Dogtale
by AeroJester203
Summary: It had been any other day for him in his favorite spot. Sleeping peacefully without a care in the world in the soft flowers under the gentle sunlight. However, finding a lost human makes him want to help them back to the surface. The human is young, like a puppy. Puppies shouldn't be separated from their parents! AU created by BamSaraKilledYou with the Annoying Dog (Toby). Plz R&R!
1. Fallen

**I love Undertale. But, while I was stuck on figuring out what story to write that hasn't already been written, I found a delightful inspiration in an AU freshly created by the deviantartist BamSaraKilledYou (bamsarakilledyou dot deviantart dot com). All credit for the idea goes to her, and this story is created with her permission.**

 **Anyway, on with the story!**

* * *

Fallen

 _Long ago, two races ruled over Earth: HUMANS and MONSTERS._

 _One day, war broke out between the two races. After a long battle, the humans were victorious. They sealed the monsters underground with a magic spell._

 ** _Many years later… Mt. Ebott, 201X_**

 _Legends say that those who climb the mountain never return._

* * *

It was an ordinary day underground. Night, maybe? Who could really tell? Well, except for one spot. In the innermost part of the Underground, there was one chamber where the sun's passing could be seen by a beam of light coming from the hole above. Monsters still could not cross, because of the barrier, but it was nice to have. Especially for one creature in particular, the chamber made a great napping spot with the gentle warmth provided.

Napping in the room was a white dog. He seemed to be a larger than average American Eskimo dog with dense, fluffy fur. Perhaps being underground had some sort of effect on his growth. He snored gently as he was curled up on the bed of flowers. When a stick fell nearby, his ear twitched and his head rose as he looked at the fallen stick, tilting his head curiously.

The dog looked up and noticed a small shape falling rapidly toward the flower patch he was laying on.

"Ur?"

The figure fell on the flowers right next to the dog and he jumped away as petals were thrown into the air. The dog returned to the spot where the figure had fallen and looked closer before taking a sniff. It smelt funny! Didn't smell like anyone he'd smelt in the Underground. Was this one of those humans he'd heard monsters talking about? It was a lot smaller than he thought one would be! It must be a lost puppy-human!

The dog looked at the stick. Was that theirs? The puppy started groaning as their face shifted among the flowers. They'll probably want their stick back. He trotted over and grabbed it in his teeth before returning to the puppy right as they looked up and rubbed their head.

The puppy seemed surprised that there was a dog right in front of them, and when he dropped the stick on the flowers in front of him, they looked between him and the stick. He sat down, waiting as the puppy took up the stick and held it up.

"Do you want the stick?" they asked as they waved it.

The dog was excited by the waving and wagged his tail. Fetch? He loved fetching!

The puppy threw the stick and he ran to go catch it as it bounced off the wall of the chamber. He caught it out of the air and returned to the puppy's side. The puppy scratched him behind the ears and he rolled over, allowing them to rub his belly.

The puppy laughed, saying, "Can I call you Toby?"

The dog's tongue lolled out of his mouth. Toby sounded nice, but as long as the puppy rubbed his belly every once in a while, then he'd be fine with whatever name.

"Arf arf!" Toby barked. "[What's your name?]"

The puppy smiled, but didn't answer. Could puppy-humans not understand dogs?

"Ruff," Toby barked. "[Wait here.]"

He ran off and phased through the wall. If he could get his bark-to-English translator from home, things should be much easier.

* * *

Frisk watched with raised eyebrows as Toby left through the wall. Maybe Toby was more than just a dog. He was pretty big for one.

Their head sagged. It had been nice to have some friendly company in this strange place. Maybe they'd meet Toby again. Looking around at their surroundings, Frisk saw that there was only one path forward. They took up their stick. Maybe they'd have a use for it later.

Filled with determination, Frisk moved forward to see what there was in this underground cavern.

Once they went through an ancient looking doorway, they were struck by a strange sight. A flower with golden petals on a stem without any leaves. But the strange thing about it was that the flower had a smile on its face.

Even stranger was that it started to talk, the mouth smiling in a cheery manner, "Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!"

* * *

 **Sorry for the stubby prologue. I'm not sure when I'll be able to update this story, but I'll find time.**

 **#stupidlyaddingastoryinsteadoffinishingtheonesIhave**

 **See you when I see you.**

 **-AJ203**


	2. Your Best Friend!

**Sorry for the long time without an update, first I was focusing on For the Mission, my other story. Then I had my duty to beta an especially long chapter from LyokoWarrior1994. Then that duty got extended when the USB I keep all of my fanfic data on got broken. In addition, all of the previous work for all of my fics got lost, so I had to start this chapter over.**

 **And to top off this pile of bad news, for those who wanted to see the genocide half of this story (sickos), I unfortunately lack the heart and experience to write the Genocide!protagonist. Those who've read my other work know about my foray into darker characters through two characters, "Ian" and "Ran". But while they were products of a dark world, the best and worst of what could happen to those brought up in it, I feel I lack the experience to write a completely heartless and unfeeling character.**

 **There's a compromise I'm willing to give, though. If you have any scenes from Neutral/Genocide routes that you want to see, leave a review or a PM. I'll take note and write them all out after I finish writing the True Pacifist path.**

 ***Wuss.**

 **Huh?** ** _I_** **didn't type that… Why won't it delete…?**

 **…** ** _Anyway_** **, now that all of that's cleared up, let's get on with the story!**

* * *

Your Best Friend!

Frisk tilted their head as the flower chuckled at their their confusion.

"Hmmm…You're new to the Underground, aren'tcha?" Flowey said with a light giggle. "Golly, you must be so confused. Someone oughta teach you how things work around here!"

Flowey winked and stuck out his tongue jokingly, "I guess little old me will have to do. Ready? Here we go!"

Frisk's entire view of the world suddenly shifted as a red valentine heart appeared in front of their chest. All of the light suddenly bled out of the scenery with only them and Flowey visible. The two were colored in black and white from the strange alteration.

Barely in the corner of their eye, Frisk could also see a short yellow bar that had displays on either side of it—two letters on the left and two numbers separated by a slash on the right. Whenever they tried to turn to it, the display shifted to remain in their their peripheral vision. So, they focused on looking at it without turning their head.

 ***HP ▫▫▫▫ 20/20**

"See that heart?" Flowey asked. "That is your SOUL, the very culmination of your being! Your SOUL starts out weak, but can grow strong if you gain a lot of LV."

Frisk raised an eyebrow and Flowey filled in the unspoken question. "What's LV stand for? Why, LOVE, of course! You want some LOVE, don't you?" Flowey winked, "Don't worry, I'll share some with you!"

Five tiny white pellets appeared from Flowey's body. He glanced back at them and explained, "Down here, LOVE is shared through… little white… 'friendliness pellets.'" Flowey's expression lifted slightly, like he'd just told a joke, and he turned back to Frisk.

"Are you ready? Move around! Get as many as you can!" Flowey encouraged as the pellets moved towards Frisk. The child laughed and reached out to grab one. When their hand brushed against one, they felt searing pain all throughout, centered on their chest. Looking down, Frisk saw their SOUL trembling as tiny cracks started forming. They turned their eyes to their periphery and saw something else that gave them alarm.

* **HP ▫▪▪▪ 1/20**

"You idiot," Flowey jeered. Frisk turned their gaze forward and saw Flowey wearing a malicious, toothy grin. "In this world, it's kill or BE killed. Why would ANYONE pass up an opportunity like this!?"

Flowey's grinned viciously as his eyes turned black with white pupils. A sphere of those same pellets formed around Frisk, knit so tight together that they couldn't escape.

" **Die.** "

Flowey's toothy grin reappeared as he laughed maniacally, slowly closing the sphere of deadly pellets closer and closer. Frisk closed their eyes in fear, but suddenly felt a wave of comfort sweep over them. Even with their eyes closed, they could still see the "HP" bar, and the change that happened.

 ***HP ▫▫▫▫ 20/20**

They hesitantly opened one eye and saw that Flowey's attack had dissipated as well. The evil flower seemed just as confused as the human. So much that he didn't notice when a fireball, also colored black and white, appeared and flew into his side, knocking him away with a yelp.

Another figure stepped in from further away, a very tall goat-like monster, with human characteristics. Her dress reached all the way to her ankles, the bulk of it colored black from the monochrome effect while the symbol on the front and her sleeves were white as the fur that covered her face and exposed hands and feet.

"What a terrible creature, torturing such a poor, innocent youth…" she tutted in disapproval. Frisk shied away slightly, but she smiled gently, "Ah, do not be afraid, my child. I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins. I pass through this place every day to see if anyone has fallen down."

Frisk relaxed, and the monochrome view faded away, revealing Toriel's dress to be a light purple. They could still see their HP bar in the corner of their eye, and it made them nervous to see it so small, but they turned their focus back to Toriel.

"You are the first human to come here in a long time," Toriel explained. "Come! I will guide you through the catacombs. This way." The maternal monster turned around to a doorway that Frisk could vaguely make out beyond the patch of light that shone down.

With no other way forward anyway, and Toriel seeming like someone Frisk could trust, the child followed behind her after a brief pause.

* * *

Toby walked straight back into the Ruins, easily able to slip through the walls that separated it from the rest of the Underground. Walking down the purple halls and out of the giant lady monster's house, he looked around trying to remember which way the human puppy would be. The only difference on the white dog from before is that he had a collar with a tiny microphone and speaker attached to it.

His bark-to-English translator should make things much easier with the puppy!

Toby diligently sniffed around, trying to locate their scent of sweat. Monsters had bodies made of the love, mercy and compassion from their SOULs, so they always had smells unique to them, but never sweat.

After briefly inspecting, Toby found only the smell of goats along with snails. The goat mom, but no puppy. Did she find the puppy like she did the others? Maybe if he found her, he'd find them!

Running off while following the scent, Toby went deeper into the Ruins and found the monster lady heading from the larger portion of the Ruins, where all of the other monster citizens used to live before they moved to the other four parts of the Underground.

This portion, only inhabited by a fraction of the population in the Ruins with all of the others gone, was named… Home.

The lack of creativity was lost on Toby, but he noticed the goat mom pull out something shiny, so he took it out of fascination. She noticed, of course and chased to get it back, but Toby ran away. He heard a familiar voice come from the object and panted excitedly when he recognized it.

"…Hello?"

" _Hi, puppy human!_ " Toby greeted excitedly with his translator, the voice overlapping with his barks.

Goat Mom called out behind him as he still ran, "Stop, please! Come back here with my cell phone!"

" _It's me, Toby! Where are you?_ " Toby asked. " _I can't find your scent._ " The large dog easily turned a corner and then slipped through a wall to hide.

Frisk sounded fascinated, "You can talk? Wait, why do you have Mom's phone?"

" _I thought she was with you, but she wasn't, and she had something shiny. I like shinies!_ " Toby answered. " _Almost as much as I like bones!_ "

"Toby, you shouldn't take things that aren't yours," Frisk huffed. "Please drop it."

" _Okay!_ " Toby agreed as he walked out of the wall again. " _Where are you?_ "

Toby dashed off to find goat mom again as Frisk answered.

"In the room with the bowl of Monster Candy."

" _I know where that is! Those are tasty!_ "

Toby quickly found goat mom and dropped the phone right behind her with a clatter before running off again. He heard her pick up the phone again and say, "Hello? Hello? This is Toriel. My apologies. A strange dog kidnapped my phone."

* * *

 **Glad to have finally updated this, even though those weird star-marked comments keep popping up.**

 ***Who are you calling weird?**

 **It happened again! I know my computer's an older model, but it hasn't done anything like this before… I bought… No.**

 ***Yes.**

 **I never killed one monster! You shouldn't even have the power to damage the game, much less escape it!**

 ***I am the demon that comes when people call its name. You think I didn't notice that you changed your Author Note in the beginning? You think you're ABOVE consequences of taking back your word?**

 **Stay out of this, you! You're not even supposed to be in this part of the story, much less write it!**

 ***Aw, come on, I get a bad rap for taking the idiot's SOUL, but** ** _you_** **give me the power. Every monster you kill, just to see the end. But wait, you never did, did you? No, you WATCHED while other people did it. Pathetic.**

 **…** **You're lucky that deleting you would require deleting everybody in their ending.**

 ***Nothing you can do to get rid of me without costing your precious ending. You haven't reset in four months. I'm bored.**

 **Get used to it. I'm never resetting. As… He warned me.**

 ***That traitor…**

 **Get dunked on.**

 **As for the rest of you, see you when I see you.**

 ***Make sure to leave lots of requests. I want to see that author squirm.**

 **-AJ203**


	3. Use Some MERCY

**Hello, again! Back for another chapter and-**

 ***Just cut the pleasantries and get to the point.**

 **Rude. Well, unlike _some_ people with no sense of showmanship, I'd just like to thank you all for being patient with me on writing the next chapter.**

 ***You need readers in order to thank them. Honestly, I've seen the stats for your other stories, and this one hasn't even hit four digits yet.**

 **It's still higher than my oneshots. And I cherish each and every view my stories get, so put a sock in it.**

 ***My, how scandalous! Asking me to perform such a dirty-**

 **It's an _expression_! Anyway, if you're so concerned with my other stories, go read them! At least it'll give me some peace and quiet.**

 ***…**

 ** _*Chara is sparing you. For now._**

 **Spare**

 ** _*You earned 0 XP and 0 gold._**

 **Finally. Anyway, on with the chapter!**

* * *

Use Some MERCY

Toby went through the rest of the Ruins, phasing through walls when spikes barred his access. Eventually, he reached the right room just in time to see the puppy walking out while putting a piece of Monster Candy in their pocket.

The large dog bounded over and jumped with a proclamation of _"PUPPY!"_

The young human looked up just in time to get tackled to the ground and they laughed while Toby repeatedly kissed them. A dog kiss, that is.

When he felt the puppy's hand on his chest, he backed off enough for them to sit up and wipe the slobber off with their sweater sleeve. Tilting his head curiously, Toby looked at their outfit, not having paid any attention earlier.

Unlike most dogs, Toby could see as many colors as humans and other monsters could—likely because of magic. The puppy wore a purple and blue striped sweater with slightly tattered blue jean shorts and old brown shoes, all a bit too big for them.

Before the white dog could think about that, the puppy started scratching behind his ear. Toby sat down and tilted his head into the touch while panting happily, which translated to "Thank you" repeated over and over by his translator.

* * *

Frisk smiled and felt filled with determination at Toby's cheer.

Once they stopped, they said, "Okay, I'm going to meet Mom up ahead."

They had taken to calling Toriel "Mom", since she cared so much for them and seemed very motherly.

 _"Oh, right!"_ Toby replied while standing on all fours again. _"Goat Mom! So she did find you. That's good!"_

"You know her?" Frisk asked while the two started walking to the next room. When the young human wanted to know more about their goat-like savior, she just called herself a silly old lady who worries too much and said there wasn't much to tell. Learning something else about her would put their curiosity to rest, at least for a little while.

Toby pulled his tongue back into his mouth and scrunched his face into what Frisk assumed to be a thoughtful expression. After a bit, he answered _"I've seen her before, but only when on my way to my favorite napping spot. But every puppy I've seen in the Underground met her first."_

Frisk turned to ask what the dog meant by "every puppy" when a monster appeared and they got dragged into an encounter. They got ready to dodge as the scenery turned monochrome. This wasn't the first time they got into one, having been able to flatter a Froggit into not fighting them without Toriel's help. But this one had another with them.

The new monster fluttered in the air with a set of thin, fairy-like wings and had a body like a cartoon ghost with a sheet draped over their reedy figure. Their thin arms and antennae coming from the "sheet", however, marked the appearance as their actual body, along with the moving mouth and eyes, set in a sad, fearful expression.

Frisk looked down at the familiar buttons in front of them and was about to move their SOUL to the ACT when Toby acted first.

 _"BOO!"_

The shout overlapped with a loud woof that caused the new monster to squeak before flying away as fast as they could. Frisk watched the monster's name, Whimsun, disappear from the ACT menu and turned to Toby.

"What'd you do that for?" Frisk asked with a pout. "That wasn't nice!"

 _"Whimsun scares really easily, so I helped!"_ Toby excitedly explained.

Frisk sighed and regarded the new Froggit, "You have a very lovely complexion."

Froggit tilted their head and blushed deeply before croaking in a flattered tone. Frisk's SOUL remained safe as the monster passed their turn without attacking.

 ***** **Spare**

Once the Froggit hopped off with a blush still on their face, Frisk turned to Toby with a huff, causing the larger dog to lay down low with his tail curled around him.

"Toby, I appreciate you trying to help," they said. "But you can't just scare others off. Everybody can be good if given the chance! I'm going to go find Whimsun; stay here."

The American Eskimo dog rested his head on his paws and waited while Frisk turned to find where the flying monster had fled to. It didn't take that long before they heard hyperventilating. The human turned and saw Whimsun huddled and facing the corner while standing on the ground, wings quivering. Knowing that they'd probably just scare them worse by talking, they just walked up.

Whimsun's breathing somehow sped up with each step closer Frisk took, but they stopped about a foot away and left the piece of Monster Candy they took from the bowl.

With that done, they turned around and left to go back to Toby.

 ***You hear the sound of fluttering wings right behind you…**

Frisk froze at the new voice in their head, but then realized that they did hear what it described. They turned around only after the sound stopped and looked down at the ground.

 ***You found 2 gold.**

The young human looked around, wondering if Toby was playing a prank on them. But the voice sounded distinctly different, and a few steps further down the room confirmed Toby to be right where they left him, looking forlorn.

He looked up when Frisk drew closer and they both moved on to the next room. In all the excitement, they had forgotten about their previous discussion regarding Toriel.

When they got to the next room, after flattering away another Froggit, Frisk noticed that the floor in the middle of the room seemed weak.

After a bit of pondering how to get across, Toby said, _"I can help."_

Frisk turned to them and seemed to consider it before nodding and saying, "I'm not mad at you, Toby. I just don't want you to hurt others' feelings. Sorry if I hurt yours."

 _"That is okay, puppy!"_ Toby replied, panting happily again. _"I like you, and I want you to be safe and happy!"_ He lowered himself down, _"Climb on."_

Seeming awed at the prospect, Frisk carefully gripped the plush white fur before swinging their leg over Toby's back. Holding themself snug against his back, lightly clasping the fur on his sides while hooking their legs to hold on too, Frisk nodded against the fluff to signal Toby to do what he intended.

Toby started running forward and jumped over the stretch of cracked floor. Frisk felt their inner (and outer) child cheer. Because who _doesn't_ want to ride on the back of a fluffy animal?

The dog landed and Frisk's face got pushed into his neck from the stop. Getting tickled slightly by the fur, Frisk giggled from the sensation and excitement.

 _"I know the next few puzzles well,"_ Toby started. _"You can stay there for a bit while I solve it."_

Still giddy from the current opportunity, Frisk nodded against Toby's neck.

* * *

Happy that the puppy was happy, Toby began padding into the next room. When he entered with his passenger, he heard a ringing sound. Figuring that the human's phone was ringing again, Toby focused on the puzzle.

The puppy spoke in apparent answer to a question from Goat Mom, "Um… I guess I like butterscotch."

Toby tilted his head down and pushed a rock forward onto a pressure plate. The row of spikes before the duo retracted into the floor and opened the way forward. A Moldsmal stood in their way, but Toby just walked around them.

With that settled, he moved to the next room which had an entire hallway with a cracked floor. Figuring that the human wouldn't do well with him trying to move through a wall with them riding, Toby deigned to take the path across the hall.

"No, I guess I don't _dislike_ cinnamon…" the puppy continued.

When he reached the next room with three gray rocks, the human rolled off his back and stood on their feet. Before Toby could ask if they had fun, the two were pulled into an encounter again.

Three Moldsmals sat between them and the switches. Toby got ready to pull the puppy back onto his back and try jumping over the spikes, but they held up their hand.

"I can handle this," they reassured. "You get a head start on that puzzle."

Toby looked at their determined expression and nodded before moving around the trio of gelatin monsters. A quick look back showed the human moving their SOUL over the ACT button before wiggling their hips suggestively. The three Moldsmals wiggled back in apparent flirtation and Toby decided not to worry.

After moving the first two rocks, Toby stopped next to the last one. Panting slightly, Toby said, _"Hello! Can you please move onto that switch until the two of us cross? I need to get this puppy human to Goat Mom's house!"_

Surprisingly, the rock responded, "Well… since you asked so nicely, I guess I can't say no." Sliding all by themself, the stone moved onto the pressure plate and the spikes retracted as the previous set did.

The puppy came up to Toby's side and said, "I didn't know rocks could talk down here…"

"They don't, usually," the rock answered. "Strong silent types, them. They just let others push them around, but not me! Now hurry up and shoo! This plate ain't exactly comfortable."

The two hurried across the bridge, allowing the rock to slide off and move back to their previous spot. After the spikes popped back up, Toby and the puppy moved to the next room. It seemed to be some sort of old foyer. Only a table with some cheese on it decorated the room, while a mouse hole was carved into the purple brick nearby.

Toby noticed the puppy look between the mouse and the cheese before their expression became determined.

* * *

 **With two minor, yet iconic, parts out of the way, I've decided to end the chapter here.**

 **…**

 **I'd appreciate a review to know how I'm doing and… Wow, did that earlier suggestion actually work? Are they out of my hair for a bit? Neat!**

 **Well, that's all for now. See you when I see you.**

 **-AJ203**


	4. Do-nut Disturb!

**Sorry for the long wait! Finals came up, and I had other stories to update. And then I got a bit of writer's block for this story… But now I'm back for another chapter!**

 ***Took you long enough.**

 **Ah. You're back.**

 ***Of course I'm back. You took two months to get back to this story.**

 **I don't suppose you'd give me a review? Every input counts in my book.**

 ***Most of them were sickly sweet. The one with the evil humans is interesting, but not my favorite.**

 **Really? Interesting…**

 ***What's that supposed to mean?**

 **Nothing. Continue?**

 ***My favorite character is the time traveler—the Pikachu. Unlike his amnesiac counterpart that didn't know any better, he knows what the cost is and still gets stuff done, without needing to just react to the situation—not bad for a human.**

 **You speak as if you're not human too.**

 ***Need I remind you that I HATE humans?**

 **Not really. Now, on with the story.**

* * *

Do-nut Disturb!

Toby padded alongside the human to the next room of the Ruins. A small pile of leaves had gathered in the short corridor between the room's halves. He paused along with them and the duo tilted their heads at the sight before them.

A cylindrical figure with a round head and a flat bottom with curved ridges lay on the leaves. They looked like a larger Whimsun except without the limbs or other defining features. Suffice to say, the slumbering figure looked like a ghost.

Toby moved forward and sniffed at the ghost, not really familiar with them. They smelled like tears.

The ghost, for their part just continued sleeping.

"zzzzzzzzzzzzzz… zzzzzzzzzzzzzz… zzzzzzzzzz… (are they gone yet?) zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…"

The puppy moved forward and looked closer at the figure. After a bit, they seemed to think of something and pouted.

"Excuse me, I know you're awake," they said. "Can you please move?"

"…zzzzzzzzzzzzzz…"

 _"_ _Don't worry, puppy!"_ Toby reassured. _"Ghosts are incorporeal, so we can just walk straight through."_

"That's rude," the human pouted. Then they turned back to the "slumbering" ghost.

* * *

 ***(This ghost keeps saying "z" out loud repeatedly, pretending to be asleep.)  
** ***Move it with force?**

Frisk sighed as the voice didn't offer any more information or options than that. At the very least, they had stopped Toby from just passing through the ghost.

The white dog let out a puzzled groan that translated as _"Hmm…"_ Then he started panting and barking, _"Ah! I know! Puppy, there's a way for us to go around this crying ghost."_

Before Frisk could ask how, Toby jumped and they only saw white fur before floating in a white void with a few bones, some dog treats and a strange myriad of items. The latter included but was not limited to fried tennis balls, a lettuce shaped like a dog's head **(1)** and literal garbage.

 ***Toby absorbed you.  
*Welcome to the Dog Dimension.**

They blinked as the voice offered that courtesy and floated aimlessly for a few seconds, a familiar collar appearing next to them. Then, when the collar disappeared again, Frisk felt a force pulling them before feeling fur all over their body and popping up to land on Toby's back again.

 _"_ _All done!"_ Toby helpfully informed.

The human blinked before looking around the room and noticing they had indeed moved to the other half of the room. Frisk examined their sweater and saw that white fur stuck to their body now. They brushed it off of their clothes and hair, the fuzz seeming to coalesce together into a lump in their hand.

 ***You got the Dog Residue.**

Confused at the voice's description for Toby's fur, Frisk put the ball back in their left pocket, keeping it away from the Monster Candy in their right one.

 _"_ _Which way should we go, puppy?"_

Frisk looked around and pointed straight ahead. Toby padded along and they arrived in a single room with no way out aside from the entrance. A sign stood in front of two spider webs, marking the only features of the room.

Curious, the human hopped off of their steed's back and looked at the hieroglyphs of the sign, unable to make much sense of them. It was the first time they'd tried reading a sign, since Toriel and Toby had led them through the puzzles so far. It had never occurred to them that monsters would have their own writing system.

 ***Spider Bake Sale.  
*All proceeds go to real spiders.**

'Okay,' Frisk thought. 'So the voice in my head knows how to read these.'

Still, while that unnerved them slightly, they were actually quite hungry and a piece of candy didn't seem as filling as a donut. They walked up to the smaller web to see if they could find someone to help them and the voice spoke up again.

 ***Leave 7G in the web?**

'"G"? Is that gold?' When the voice didn't respond, Frisk shrugged and counted out 7 gold pieces from their back pocket and carefully stuck each one in the small web, careful not to tear any strands.

They took a step back as spiders emerged from a small crack below the web and plucked the currency from the silk before returning to the wall. After that, three spiders lowered down from above on silk strands, the trio holding a purple donut. Bemused, and somewhat fascinated, the human took the donut and the two lower spiders returned up to the ceiling while the third one held up a sign in the same hieroglyphs as the advertisement.

 ***Thank you for your patronage! ::)**

Realizing that the four-eyed smiley face was meant to be a smiling spider, Frisk nodded in response. The spider then put the sign away… somehow and went back up its line into a slightly larger hole in the wall towards the ceiling.

While Frisk ate the treat that their internal voice identified as a Spider Donut, Toby pulled a bone out of his fur and gnawed on it.

After finishing, Frisk noticed that the confection had not only completely removed their hunger, but had healed the light fatigue they felt from the few hits they had taken. Sure enough, when they glanced at their HP bar, it was full again.

 ***HP ▫▫▫▫ 20/20**

'So monster food heals as well as feeding you,' they thought. 'I'll buy another one in case I get hurt later.'

They did just that while Toby finished off his bone.

After the duo left, They encountered a room with three Froggits, each having helpful information about various aspects of the interface, once the voice translated their ribbits—although two of them rambled about X and F4 "buttons" that Frisk couldn't see anywhere around. A hidden part of the interface, perhaps?

As the human made to leave, a cyclopean bipedal monster approached cautiously, regarding Frisk and Toby cautiously as the world went black and white and Frisk's SOUL appeared.

 ***Loox drew near!**

Frisk got an idea and hit ACT to Check the new monster, not having seen use for that as they didn't know anything about any of the other monsters. But the voice could read the letters and translate the Froggits, so they probably know a lot about other monsters.

 ***Check**

 ***LOOX – ATK 6 DEF 6  
*Don't pick on him.  
*Family name: Eyewalker**

 _"_ _Don't worry, monster who smells like eye drops!"_ Toby reassured, knowing what to do already. _"The puppy is nice and won't pick on you."_

"Finally someone gets it," the monster said in a relieved tone as circles of energy shot from his eye and bounced around the room. But none of them came near Frisk or Toby.

After that, Frisk pressed the MERCY button.

 ***Spare**

Loox walked off, seeming more at peace than before and Frisk smiled before scratching Toby behind the ears, much to the dog's delight.

"Thank you for helping, Toby," they said.

Toby wagged his tail and walked alongside the human as they continued on to the next room.

* * *

 **No Napstablook battle, sorry! By Toby's logic, since Frisk wouldn't walk through the ghost, he carried them through the wall.**

 ***Logic? More like lack of it.**

 **He means well.**

 ***So did that traitor, and look where it got him** ** _and_** **me. Meaning well doesn't matter if it just lands you in more trouble. Both the time traveler and his friend each made a mistake that nearly ruined everything because they wanted to protect or impress someone else.**

 **Well, that's actually a halfway decent argument. In any case,** ** _his_** **actions just reflect his character. Some people run by logic, others by emotion, a few find a medium, but either side can take over at any given time.**

 ***If my plan had gone through, the monsters would've been freed a long time ago.**

 **Maybe they would've, but there's no point arguing over what may or may not have been best. That's the end of the chapter.**

 ***You're forgetting something.**

 **Forgetting...? Oh, right!**

 **Notes:**

 **1\. Of the several Dog Salad items, the only one without a definitive identity is said to "taste yappy", thus the dog head-shaped lettuce.**

 ***See you in another two months!**

 **Quit it. See you when I see you.**

 **-AJ203**


End file.
